Stormy Troubles And Thunderous Love
by LazyPuppy
Summary: After moving to Orlando, Lacey and her friends hope to escape someone. After meeting Ryan McCarthy, sparks seem to fly. Will Lacey fall for him? Even while knowing what could happen if her troubles find her? When they do, it's life or death. Ryan/OC
1. Chapter 1

Disclaimer - I own nothing except my OCs and the plot-line.

**Chapter One: Arrival In Orlando**

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Lacey Kyoto sighed as she looked over at her two friends. The trio was sitting at the airport. They were waiting for Lacey's aunt to come pick them up. The seventeen year old brushed a lock of her raven black hair out of her face, and furrowed her eyebrows when she felt her friend kicking her.

"What?"

"When's your aunt going to get here?" Amber groaned as she let her head fall back.

"I don't know." Lacey shrugged as she briefly looked at the brunette.

"Well it better be soon cause I'm dying of boredom. I need to do something." Amber huffed as she glared playfully at Lacey and threw her light brown hair over her shoulder.

"Oh chill out Am, she'll get here, it's not like Lacey forgot to call her and tell her that we were coming, right Lace?" Piper raised an eyebrow as she gazed at the youngest of the trio with her piercing dark blue colored eyes and blew her dark red hair out of her eyes.

"Of course I called her Piper." Lacey scoffed, and then quickly pulled out her phone to text her aunt.

Piper smiled amusedly, and shook her head. She was the oldest out of them all, and was quickly labeled as the one that had to take responsibility for the three of them. She didn't mind of course. Piper knew that Lacey was responsible, though forgetful sometimes, but Amber was practically a mess. The girl was a year older than Lacey, a year younger than Piper, but had the mind of a five year old sometimes. She couldn't sit still for five minutes to save her life.

"Hey Pip, you know I can't chill out. I always need something to do." Amber frowned.

"Yeah I know, but could you at least talk quieter? I mean come on; we're at the airport, not a concert." Piper rolled her eyes.

Lacey rolled her dark brown eyes at the bickering between her two friends as she read the text that her aunt had sent back to her. She suddenly stood up, and momentarily smiled at the silence that had followed the action.

"Come on, my aunt's here." She stated as she bent down to pick up her bags.

"Finally." Amber muttered as she also gathered her things and stood up.

The trio left the building, and walked around to try and spot Lacey's aunt. It wasn't too hard…who else had bright, bright red hair…and a sign that had their names on it…

"Oh Lacey, look at you. You've grown so much since the last time I saw you." Miranda stated as she gave her niece a hug, and then proceeded to give the other two girls a hug.

Once all of their luggage was in the trunk of the car, and they were all buckled in, Miranda drove off towards her home. Piper and Amber had taken to talk to Miranda, and Lacey had taken to fall into her thoughts and let them take her away.

She thought about the reason why they were there. They couldn't stay in their home city anymore because of some trouble that was brewing. Trouble that would've gotten all three of them killed if they had stayed. They had left behind a lot of things. Amber and Piper had left behind their possessions, boyfriends, their friends, family, and their normal life. They left behind everything they knew. Lacey had left behind her troubled past, her emotional scars, and her little sister.

Lacey felt a bit contrite for lying to her aunt about the reason for them coming over, it wasn't because they wanted to let loose, and party. They needed to be in a safe place. She also felt bad for Piper and Amber. They were dragged into this mess by her, accidentally of course, but Lacey still felt guilty.

Hopefully _he _never found out where they were, if _he_ did, Lacey didn't even want to think about what he would do.

_Some Time Later:_

"Well, here we are girls." Miranda stated as she pulled into the driveway of her home.

"Wow, this is a nice place you got Miranda." Piper nodded, impressed by the home in front of her.

"Thank you Piper." Miranda smiled.

The four got out of the car, and got their things out of the trunk. The quartet walked up to the porch, and waited patiently as Miranda took out her keys to open it. Lacey took the time to look around the neighborhood. She looked over at the neighbor's house, and noticed a very attractive guy staring at her, and her friends. She quirked up an eyebrow, but looked away when she heard the door open.

Lacey, along with her friends and aunt, walked in.

"This place seems bigger than I remember." Lacey stated as she looked over the pictures on the wall.

"Well, the last time you were here was when you were five." Miranda smiled. "Oh it's so good to have you here. I've missed you so much."

Lacey smiled, and hugged her aunt back. She looked over at her two friends, and noticed them looking around with the same expressions as she had on their faces. The seventeen year old let go of the older woman, and smiled.

"You still remember where your room is right?"

Lacey nodded.

"Good, so you go upstairs, and show your friends where they'll be sleeping." Miranda ushered Lacey towards the stairs, and then did the same thing when Amber and Piper got close enough.

The trio of girls laughed at Miranda's gesture, and raced each other up the stairs.

"Am, you'll be staying in that room, and Pip, you're in that room." Lacey pointed, and when she saw them nod, she walked towards her own bedroom.

She opened the door, and instantly grinned. Her aunt had redecorated the room. No wonder she had gotten so many questions in an e-mail about all her favorite things. Lacey walked in, and closed the door. She set her things on the floor, and jumped onto the bed. A sigh of contentment passed her lips, and she curled up into a fetal position. The bed felt so soft, and the pillow was heavenly.

Lacey looked around the room. The walls were painted black with sky blue designs on them. A nightstand sat on each side of her bed, and each had a lamp on them. The ceiling was a dark blue with tiny designs of stars. The bed sheets were crimson red, matching the pillow cases. A TV and computer also sat in the room on opposite walls. A couch was against a wall too. Lacey couldn't believe the trouble her aunt had gone through to make the room seem comfortable.

She'd thank her later. For now, it was time to sleep.

And hopefully the nightmare that had plagued her for so long wouldn't haunt her tonight.

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Review please? :]


	2. Chapter 2

**Chapter Two: Just Oh So Confident**

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_The sound of harsh and uncontrollable breathing met her ears. The feel of her heart beating wildly against her chest was felt. And the presence of fear and dread filled her veins. Her eyes were frantic as she looked around quickly and hurriedly for a place to hide. _

_A twig snapped. _

_Lacey froze, and she stopped breathing for a couple seconds before she sprinted in some obscure direction. She didn't care which direction she headed in, as long as she got away from __**him**__. She cringed slightly when she felt the quick perforate of a thorn on her arm. At this point, Lacey didn't care to stop and look at the small wound, she needed somewhere to hide and rest. _

_She promptly stopped her frenzied running, and looked around. Nothing but trees met her line of vision. She seethed in frustration before hastily crouching down to the ground, and shielding her head with her arms when she heard the familiar sound of a gun firing off towards the sky. _

_**He**__ was getting near._

_Lacey ran while crouched down, and when she was sure that she had lost the man once more, she stood up and ran quicker; quicker than she had ever ran in her life. _

_A trickle of sweat ran down her face. Her once clear and calculating mind was now in shambles and her rationality clouded by the irrational thoughts flying through her mind. She was panicking. The sound of her pounding footsteps did not help her think. She couldn't think. The only thought was to get as far away as she could, but she didn't know where this place was. It was unfamiliar. _

_Lacey grinned slightly when she saw the road. She bolted towards it, hoping that there were cars going by. Her slightest feeling of hope shattered when she felt something pierce her thigh. She cried out in pain, and fell on the road. Tears flowed down her dirt covered face. Lacey looked down, and cringed greatly when she saw the blood. The pain was numbed out by her adrenaline and fear, thankfully. _

_The seventeen year old froze when she heard a car. She quickly looked behind her, and let out a blood curdling scream when she saw the bright headlights of a car racing towards her. _

_She braced for impact. _

Lacey gasped for air as she quickly sat up, and looked around the room. Her panic slightly relaxed, and she placed her hands on her face. She brushed away the light layer of sweat that had appeared as she had her nightmare. Lacey waited until her heart slowly returned to its normal pace before getting up and walking downstairs into the kitchen. She didn't bother to look at the time, she needed water.

Walking quietly down the stairs, Lacey could only guess that it was about four in the morning. She shivered slightly as she felt the cool air hit her heated skin; sending waves of chills through her body and waves of goose-bumps on her skin.

She walked into the kitchen, and got a glass from the cabinet. Lacey went to the freezer and opened the door to get some ice. As she closed it, and looked to her left, she jumped and almost let out a shriek.

"Shit! Pip, what the hell?" She asked as she laughed brokenly and placed her free hand over her heart.

"Sorry Lace." Piper smiled apologetically while watching her friend get some water. "Can't sleep?"

"No, I just woke up, how about you?" Lacey asked as she took a sip of her water. She ignored the slight tremble of her hand, and let herself relax fully when she felt the cool liquid flowing down her throat.

Piper shrugged, and grabbed an apple.

"I couldn't sleep, had too much on my mind."

Lacey examined her friend for a couple moments before looking away, and taking another sip. She spoke a couple seconds later.

"Let me guess, about what happened back home?"

Piper nodded, and hopped on the counter to sit down.

"I just…I just can't believe that something like that happened." She stated. "I mean, he has every right to be mad at us yes, but what he's trying to do to us right now, that is not right."

Lacey looked down, and became fascinated with her ice filled water. She heard the upset tone in her friend's voice. Piper had every right to be upset, but something was a bit off in her sentence.

"It's not _us_, Pip, it's _me_."

"Lacey," Piper's tone suddenly turned sharp. "You will _not_ blame this all on yourself, you understand me? We've been friends for a long time, we promised to help each other out. Lace, you _can't_ handle him alone. You need me and Amber."

Lacey's lips curled into a small, sad smile.

"But none of this would've started if it hadn't been for _me_."

Piper's shoulders slumped, and she sighed. The older of the two silently jumped down from the counter, and went over to hug Lacey.

"But either way, we're in this together Lace. Now, try and get some sleep. Amber's going to want to go to the store and buy lots and lots of junk food."

Lacey laughed softly. She was feeling a bit better. She'd let the conversation slide. Lacey knew there was no point in arguing with Piper once she had her mind made up, especially about this situation.

"I guess she's the only one sleeping well tonight." Lacey shook her head.

"Lucky her." Piper mumbled. "Look, just don't think about him, alright? The further away he is from your mind, the better our 'vacation' is going to be."

Lacey grinned, and nodded.

"Yeah, I guess you're right. Thanks Pip."

"No problem Lace." Piper softly punched her friend on the arm before walking back upstairs with her apple.

Lacey smiled to herself before nodding. She took her glass of water with her, and turned off the lights of the kitchen. Maybe Piper was right, maybe she was thinking about it too much, but she couldn't help it. It plagued her. He and the incident was in her dreams, in her mind, hell she even had the scars to remind her of it on her back.

She shuddered slightly as she thought about the scars. There were three parallel lines going down from the top of her back to small of her back. The way she got them was not a way that she would've liked to remember. She walked into her room, and closed the door.

The glass of ice cold water was now starting to drip, and her hand started to numb from the coldness of the cup. She took a sip before setting it down on the table.

Lacey jumped on the bed, and let herself fall into a restless sleep.

_Later On:_

Amber scurried towards Lacey's bedroom. It was now twelve, and she wanted to go somewhere to get some food, mainly the glorious junk food she had been deprived of for about a week. The eighteen year old quietly opened the door, and then quietly shut it when she was in.

She smiled, and then ran to jump onto the bed.

"Wake up Lace!" She screamed.

She heard Lacey groan, and then watched as the younger of the two buried herself deeper into the blankets.

"Come on Lace, we got to go to the store." She urged, poking Lacey every single second.

"Go away Am." Lacey grunted.

"Lacey," she whined. "I'll give you five dollars."

"Ten."

"Six."

"Twelve."

"Eight."

"Ten."

"Deal."

Lacey looked up at Amber, and with a confused face, she shook her head. She didn't want to know why Amber didn't just accept the ten when she first suggested it, but that's what made them become friends in the first place. Odd conversations worked wonders.

"Give me that." Lacey snatched the ten dollar bill from Amber's hand, and then laid back down. "What time is it?"

"Twelve."

"Alright, get out so I can change."

"Yay!" Amber squeaked, and then jumped off the bed.

Lacey chuckled as she watched her hyper friend race out of the room, and then got up. Oh how she hated feeling the slightest bit of a chill every time she got out of the lovely, warm bed.

_Twenty Minutes Later:_

Lacey, Piper, and Amber were now at the store. The only person that was actually buying something was Amber, with the supervision of Piper of course. Neither Lacey nor Piper trusted Amber alone with junk food. A hyperactive person plus junk food was just not a good combination.

So while they looked over the food, Lacey leaned against a wall and waited for them to finish up. As she waited, she twirled her thumbs, and looked around. She tilted her head a bit when she noticed a car that looked liked her neighbor's pulled up into the parking lot. It might've been her neighbor's, Lacey wasn't sure. She hadn't been in the area long enough to tell what car belonged to who.

Ugh, the thought of cars made her miss her own car, though, it was in a bit in need of fixing at the moment.

Lacey looked away, but from the corner of her eye, she saw him; her neighbor, her very _hot_ neighbor. She couldn't help but admire how hot he was. She silently laughed in her head. Some time ago, she had told herself that she would never fawn over a guy, and here she was doing the exact thing she told herself that she wouldn't do. How funny. From the corner of her eye, she watched as he walked towards her.

"Hi." He greeted.

"Hi." Lacey nodded towards him with a small smile.

"I'm Ryan, your neighbor." Ryan stated as he held out his hand.

"I'm Lacey, nice to meet you." She shook his hand. Immediately upon their hands touching, Lacey felt her heart start to race. _'Uh, what the hell heart?' _Lacey thought, but she managed her smile and composure.

"So what are you doing just standing here all by yourself?" He asked, giving her a charming smile.

"I'm not alone. My friends are inside getting food." Lacey answered, refusing to let herself be swooned by the dazzling smile.

"Ah." Ryan nodded. "I was hoping that we could hang out, just the two of us. Neighbor to neighbor you know?"

Lacey raised an eyebrow. She had to give him credit, he was confident. The guys back home weren't really that confident about asking her to hang out or anything, but then again, she had gotten into a lot of trouble back at the home. Lacey smirked inwardly at the memories.

"Well, aren't you just oh so confident." Lacey teased lightly with a small giggle.

Ryan smirked.

"Yeah, I don't really need to beat around the bush."

Lacey laughed softly and shortly. She looked around, and noticed her friends walking nearer to the car.

"It was so nice to meet you Ryan, but I got to go now. My friends are done with the shopping." Lacey gave him one last smile before walking away towards her friends.

As she neared them, she saw them giving her questioning looks. Lacey shook her head, meaning that they'd talk later, and unlocked her aunt's car. The trio got in, and Lacey turned on the car. She looked one last time at Ryan, smiled, and then pulled away. She saw that he was still smirking, and looking at her.

Wasn't he just a lovely, confident guy?

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Last chapter didn't get as many reviews as I had hoped, but whatever haha. :)

Review please :)


	3. Chapter 3

**Chapter Three: This Wasn't Awkward At All**

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As Lacey drove the car towards her aunt's home, she could feel the pair of eyes that were staring very intently, yet curiously, at her. She was refusing to answer any questions, well, not really refusing considering they hadn't asked any questions but she knew that the questions would come sooner or later. But knowing Amber, she was probably going to be questioning her a lot.

"Who was he?" Amber finally questioned.

"Our neighbor." Lacey answered without taking her eyes off the road.

"He's hot." Amber stated.

"Amber." Lacey scolded lightly.

"What? You know it's true." Amber pouted.

"Whatever Amber." Lacey rolled her eyes, but couldn't help but agree with Amber. He was a very, very hot guy.

"Lace," Amber whined. "You can't stay single forever. Just because the accident happened doesn't mean you should stay single."

Lacey sighed, but luckily she didn't have to reply to Amber's comment because Piper replied for her.

"Am, just leave Lace alone about her love life alright? She can make her own decisions about a guy." Piper stated as her eyes darted towards Lacey.

"Thanks." Lacey mouthed to Piper.

"Welcome." She mouthed back with a smile.

_Back In Oregon:_

Sebastian Diamond stood behind his desk, and glared down intimidatingly at his 'friend.' His fists were clenched so tightly that his knuckles turned white. His teeth grinded against each other angrily, and his eyes held a wild, murderous look in them. He had been in such a good mood before his employee had come to inform him that his lovely little prey had left the city, and ran off somewhere with her little friends.

It was true that he didn't care that much about Lacey's little friends, but they shaped themselves into being great bait for him to use against Lacey…and it wouldn't be so horrible if he had two more little quarries to play with and then hopefully, kill. Gah, it felt so good, so pleasurable, to see the dark, warm liquid of blood, to see the horror and fear in his victim's eyes, and to torture the little prey until their life was long gone. When was the last time he had killed someone?

He mused over the question before turning away from his employee and staring out the window.

"Emmanuel," his gruff, smooth voice finally sounded. From the window's reflection in front of him, he could see his employee looking a bit nervous. Good. "Track her, find her, and bring her back to me."

"Yes sir." Emmanuel automatically answered. Though, he did not want to comply with the demands of his employer at the moment; he felt immensely tired.

"Good, now go." Sebastian barked.

Emmanuel nodded before turning on his heel and left the room with a frown on his face.

"Fuck!" Sebastian yelled as he angrily pushed all the objects on his desk to the floor.

He growled in frustration, and ran a hand roughly through his hair. He was going to get that bitch. He was going to make her pay for what she had done. He was going to make sure of it. He had sworn to his brother that he would. The twenty three year old sighed, and felt numb as he remembered the night of the incident. What a night that had been. Gosh, he hadn't seen a much more destructive night in so long, but the destruction hadn't been in a good way. It had been tragic, and, in his opinion, the events of that night were started by Lacey Kyoto.

That little bitch was going to know the meaning of true pain when he got his hands on her.

_With Lacey and Friends:_

Right now, Lacey, Piper, and Amber sat in Lacey's room with small cartons of ice cream. Music was blasting through the speakers, and the three friends were laughing and joking around. Ever since arriving in Orlando, it seemed as if their worries were starting to disappear, but there was still that little seed of doubt that was in the back of each of their minds. For now though, it was just time to relax and enjoy the time they had.

Ryan stared at his neighbor's house. He sighed. The start of his summer was a bit boring. Most of his friends had left to go on vacation with their families, and his parents had left for a vacation of their own. He didn't even want to think of what they'd be doing on that vacation. It would scar his mind for a bit if he did actually think about it.

He shrugged to himself before walking over to the house next door, and knocking on the door. Ryan knew that he could actually just walk in without knocking or anything because Miranda had gotten close to his family ever since she had moved in, but he was going to be polite for today.

The blonde waited for someone to come open the door, and when they did, he was greeted by a smile from Miranda.

"Ryan, hi." She greeted.

"Hey Miranda." He greeted back with a smile, and then raised an eyebrow when he heard the loud music.

"Oh don't mind the music, my niece and her friends are staying for a bit, and well, yea." Miranda explained. "Now come on in."

Ryan stepped inside the house, and the smell of cookies greeted his nostrils. Miranda was a bit obsessed with baking.

"Can I have a cookie?" He couldn't help but act like a little kid around Miranda. She was kind, generous, and loving to everyone, and everything. She made everyone feel like a little kid.

"Of course you can." Miranda ushered him towards the kitchen. "Have you met my niece yet?"

"Yea, I did, at the store." Ryan replied, taking a cookie off of the plate.

"Did she seem okay? Because I haven't had a chance to ask her how she was feeling yet." Miranda looked at him with curious eyes and was making Ryan chuckle quietly with all of her hand gestures.

"Relax Miranda, she was fine. She was smiling, and laughing."

"That's good, that's good." Miranda nodded, and before she could ask another question, she heard a thud come from the second floor. She frowned. "Lacey! What was that?"

"It was nothing Aunt Miranda! It was just Amber acting stupid!" Lacey yelled.

"Okay! Just don't break anything okay?"

"Okay!" Lacey yelled before looking over at Amber who was moaning as she clutched her head. This was what she got for eating her ice cream way too quickly.

"We warned you that you shouldn't have done that." Piper sang as she took a small bite of her ice cream.

"Shut up Pip." Amber moaned as she rolled around.

"Want me to get you some water?" Lacey asked.

"Yes please Lace." Amber replied as she kicked Piper, who in return threw a shoe back at Amber.

Lacey shook her head, and grinned before walking out of her room. She quickly walked downstairs, but laughed as she watched Piper and Amber wrestle around for a bit. Amber and Piper might've been a bickering pair of friends, but she wouldn't trade them over for anything in the world. They meant way too much to her.

She bounded down the stairs, and slid herself into the kitchen. When she saw who was accompanying her aunt in the room, she chewed on her bottom lip, and froze.

There was Ryan, sitting on a stool, and eating a batch of cookies that she undoubtedly knew that her aunt had baked. She noticed that he had changed his shirt, and admired for a couple seconds on how it complimented his body. Lacey mentally slapped herself, what the hell was wrong with her? She was here on 'vacation,' not to ogle guys. Either way though, she looked like crap right now with her hair messed up, and looking like she had nothing underneath the giant hoodie that she wore. Lovely second impression. He looked good, and she looked crappy. But oh well.

"Hey Lacey, cookies?" Miranda held out another plate covered in cookies to her niece.

"Thanks Auntie." Lacey took one before walking over to get a cup.

"Hey Lacey." Ryan smiled at her.

"Hey Ryan." She replied, smiling back at him before getting some ice, and putting water in it.

"Lacey, I'm going to be working for the rest of the day okay? Do you think you and your friends can manage being here alone?" Miranda asked as she looked over at Lacey.

"Yea, we'll be fine." Lacey nodded, giving her aunt a reassuring smile.

"Alright, but call me if you need anything okay? And if you can't reach me, Ryan can help you too alright?"

"Auntie Miranda, we will be fine." Lacey laughed. "You worry too much."

"Yes, but someone needs to worry about you girls." Miranda gave her niece a look.

Lacey only smiled, and nodded. She and Ryan watched as Miranda walked back and forth, in and out, of the room before actually leaving the home. Lacey shook her head before turning back to Ryan.

"So how long have you known my aunt?" She asked, leaning on the counter and looking at him.

"Since she moved in." Ryan answered.

"Lacey! Where the hell is my water?" Amber yelled.

"I'm coming!" Lacey yelled back. "Let me go give this to my friend."

Ryan nodded, and watched her walk away. His eyes stayed on her long, lightly tanned legs. He smirked to himself before shaking his head.

"Here's your water." Lacey held it out to Amber.

The seventeen year old rolled her eyes in amusement as she watched the shorter girl chug it down.

"That felt good." Amber smiled, putting the cup on the desk.

"Whatever Am."

"So where did your aunt go?" Piper asked as she turned off the music, and turned on the TV.

"Work, she won't be back until tomorrow I guess."

"Coolio, we got the place to ourselves." Amber grinned, and then leaned back on the chair she sat on.

Piper and Lacey snickered when Amber fell backwards off the chair because there was no back to it.

"Hey, my aunt made us some cookies. Want me to bring you guys some?" Lacey offered.

"Yeah, that sounds good." Both Piper and Amber replied.

Ryan looked around the empty kitchen, and sighed. Somehow, he had been hoping to actually get to know Lacey a bit better…alone. There was something about her that intrigued him; that pulled him towards her. He had never felt anything like it with any other girl, not even Baja. He smiled as he mused over the fact that Lacey was the first girl in a really long time that had captured his attention. Maybe it was the fact that she just moved in or that he wanted to sleep with her, he wasn't sure, probably the first option though. He highly doubted that Lacey, someone who he could see was smart, would fall for his little tricks.

He looked up when he heard her walk back into the kitchen. Ryan smiled as he watched her jump a bit.

"I thought you would've left already." She breathed, and laughed lightly as she came to stand in front of him.

"Nah thought I'd just hang around here for a while." Ryan shrugged.

"That's cool…I guess." Lacey bounced on the heel of her feet.

Ryan was about to reply when someone else's voice interrupted him.

"Amber!"

Lacey looked up, and watched as Amber ran down the stairs while laughing loudly. She felt herself being pushed into Ryan as Amber passed by.

"Sorry Lace! Piper's trying to kill right now!" Amber yelled, opening the back door and continued running.

Lacey was about to get up, but Piper had slightly bumped against her, and made her fall onto Ryan once more. She blew her hair out of her face, and looked up at Ryan. A slight blush erupted on her cheeks when she realized the position that they were in. If Amber were to see them right now, Lacey had no doubt that she'd be asking if they were going to kiss or something anytime soon. Well…this wasn't awkward at all. It's perfectly normal to lean this closely on a guy that she had just met.

"Ugh…"

"Sorry." Ryan smirked as he let her go.

"It's alright." Lacey nodded slightly before looking out into the backyard to see if Piper had caught Amber. She cringed slightly when she saw that Piper had Amber in a headlock. "Sorry about them."

"It's alright. They seem interesting." Ryan chuckled.

"Yeah." Lacey smiled, trying to force the blush to go away.

"But I see you have your hands full for today, I'll see you tomorrow Lacey." Ryan stated as he got up, and gave her one last smile before leaving the house.

Lacey didn't say anything as she watched him leave. She placed her hands on her hips and scolded herself for letting herself be swooned like that. She quickly ran outside to help Amber when she heard the slightly older, but shorter, girl yell for help.

"Piper! You let go of her right now before I get the broom!"

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This chapter sounded so much better in my head. Oh well.

And to **justlivenletlive** - yea, she's half Japanese, and the other half, I'm still debating about.

As always, please leave a review. It'll get you to the next chapter much quicker :)


	4. Chapter 4

**Chapter Four: We're Nothing**

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Ryan lounged around his home, and stared up at the ceiling. The only thing going through his mind was his neighbor, his very _cute_ neighbor. Though they had talked for a bit, she still seemed a bit…shy, he supposed. It might take a while for her to trust him, but it'd be worth it. He liked her, and if anything, he could tell that she liked him. The only difference was that she was holding back a bit.

His mind swirled around, but he was suddenly taken out of his thoughts when he heard the doorbell ring. He got up, and walked towards the door. He opened the door, and frowned when he saw who was standing outside his front door. For the past couple of months he had started messing around with a girl, but for the last couple of weeks, she had started being clingy.

"What are you doing here Scarlett?" He asked gruffly.

"Ryan," she feigned hurt. "I thought you'd be happy to see me."

"Scarlett, I told you that I didn't want to see you again." Ryan stated bluntly.

"Ryan," she purred. "Don't lie. You and I both know that you've _missed_ me."

Ryan raised his eyebrow. He really didn't miss her that much, but his body sure did. He had been so used to having her body next to his for the last couple of months, but it's been a couple of days since they had last been together and his body was wanting her right now.

He pulled her into the home, and crashed his lips onto hers roughly. After a few moments, he pulled back.

"See Ryan, you can't _resist_ me." Scarlett smirked.

"You can't resist me either." He whispered huskily in her ear, and a look of triumph entered his eyes when he heard her breathing hitch, and her hands grabbing his shirt.

"Why don't we take this upstairs Ryan?"

"After you Scarlett."

Ryan's blue eyes followed Scarlett's body as she walked towards the stairs. His eyes met hers, and he saw the lustful, hungry look in them. He followed her up the stairs, and then after a few seconds, started chasing after her when she ran. He stopped when he reached the door frame of his bedroom, and stared hungrily at Scarlett as she sat seductively on his bed.

He grinned, and closed the door as he advanced towards Scarlett.

_Some Time Later:_

Ryan stood near the window, and gazed outside. From where he stood, he could see Lacey working on what he guessed was her car. He chuckled silently as he watched her hit the engine with her wrench a couple times, and when he listened closely, he could actually hear her cussing at it too. It was very comical to watch, especially when she kicked the car's tires and jumped around holding her foot.

In his mind though, he couldn't help but wonder what had happened to the car. It was damaged badly, scratched, and one of the windows was also shattered. What could've happened that brought the car such injuries?

The blonde turned back to look at Scarlett, who was still sleeping, and frowned. He had told himself many times that he would stop sleeping with her, but his body just wouldn't cooperate sometimes. It also didn't help that she was amazing at pleasuring him.

He shook his head, and looked back over at where Lacey was. She was now sitting on the hood of the car, and seemed to by listening to her iPod.

"Who the hell is she?" He heard Scarlett ask. He heard the jealousy in her tone.

"My neighbor." He replied curtly.

Scarlett snorted, and pulled the blankets closer to her.

"Is she _just_ your neighbor?"

"Yes."

"She better be, because you know, you're my-"

"I'm your what Scarlett?" Ryan interrupted, turning to look over at the nude girl covering herself with his bed sheets.

"Ryan." Scarlett frowned. "You and me-"

"You and I aren't anything Scarlett. I've told you this over and over again." Ryan was easily frustrated by Scarlett, and right now, he was really annoyed.

"But Ryan, we've been together for months." Scarlett pouted.

Months ago, he would've given her a smirk, and a way to get rid of that cute little pout. Right now, however, that pout was doing nothing to earn her sympathy from him.

"Together? We've been doing nothing but screw around."

"Yeah, but everyone knows about us." Scarlett crossed her arms.

"That's because someone found out about you and I." Ryan growled.

Scarlett growled lowly to herself, and glared at Ryan. She refused to be used as his little plaything. She wanted to be his girlfriend, not his little slut. But when she looked at him, her glare lessened a little when she noticed his angry gaze. She had seen him when he was angry, it was horrible, yet, such a turn on. She had always liked to push his buttons until she knew that Ryan was going to fuck her, but right now, she knew that she was crossing some line with him.

"I think you should leave now Scarlett." Ryan growled.

"Fine." She growled back, and got out of his bed. She picked up her clothes, and re-dressed herself. "You can say that you don't like me, hate me even, all you want, but you're going to come back and screw me soon enough Ryan."

Ryan said nothing. He didn't even look at her, nor did he even flinch when Scarlett slammed his door shut. He was more pre-occupied with his thoughts than he was about how Scarlett was feeling.

"Stupid bitch." He muttered to himself.

The blonde unclenched his fists, and breathed in deeply to try and rid himself of his annoyance. He knew the perfect thing to calm himself down. Ryan walked out of his room, and one destination in mind, get to the gym…but first he wanted to see if Lacey was abusing her car anymore. It was amusing, and he needed a good laugh at the moment.

Ryan looked out the window in the hallway, and a smile immediately graced his lips. Lacey was once more, abusing her car. Funny, he would've never guessed that she would abuse cars, but apparently he was wrong.

"That's gotta hurt." He snickered to himself when he saw her drop a wrench on her foot.

He saw her stand up, and then looked towards the window where he was standing at. He waved at her. She waved back, but looked embarrassed.

Ryan chuckled.

* * *

As usual please review...Or else

:)


	5. Chapter 5

**Chapter Five: Pet Store**

* * *

It's been a week and a half since Lacey had moved in with her aunt, and things were going good. Her aunt was like the mother she never had, her friends were still the ones she considered her 'sisters,' and she and Ryan were becoming real close real quick. The only problem was this girl that kept shooting her evil glares when they were near each other in public. Lacey didn't even want to know why the girl didn't like her.

But right now, Lacey sat in Ryan's living room, playing Call of Duty: Black Ops with him.

"Man, how many times have we died?" Lacey asked as she put the controller on the coffee table.

"Don't know, lost track." Ryan replied as he did the same thing. He looked over at Lacey, and noticed that she had a thoughtful look on her face. "What're you thinking about Lace?"

"I'm thinking about how awesome it would be to have a pet." Lacey answered a bit dreamily.

Ryan smiled. He had quickly gotten used to her childish, stupid, and random attitude that tended to come out at times. He had found it to be quite amusing. He stood up to turn off the game system.

"I want to go to the pet store." She suddenly stated.

Ryan stopped what he was doing, and turned to look at Lacey curiously. She looked at him with a smile, and an innocent look in her eyes. She often used that look to try and get what she wanted. Sadly for him, he complied with almost half of her wants since there was nothing else to do.

"Why?" He asked after a few moments.

"Because I want a pet. Didn't you hear what I said a couple seconds ago?" Lacey smiled. "Please."

Ryan sighed. There wasn't anything else to do today, so why not. Besides that, from what Piper and Amber had told him, he couldn't trust her alone in a pet store.

"Alright, I'll drive you to the pet store." He finally said as he stood up. He knew that she couldn't drive herself since her aunt had taken the only working car, and her own car was still in need of some repairs.

"Thanks Ryan. I appreciate it." She smiled as she also stood up and followed him outside.

"It's not a problem Lace." Ryan gave her a reassuring look as the two got in the car.

_Amber and Piper:_

The two lounged around the kitchen. Miranda had gone to work, Lacey was hanging with Ryan, and they were bored out of their minds. They wanted something to do, but were really too lazy to actually do anything. Though, it definitely surprised Piper that Amber was actually acting calm…for once.

"Hey Pip?"

"Yea?"

"What do you think of Ryan and Lacey?"

Piper raised an eyebrow. What did she think of Ryan and Lacey? Well, it was obvious to her that the two were friends, and got along great with each other. But why would she care anyways? It was Lacey's life, not hers. If Ryan was trouble, then she would talk with Lacey and voice out her concerns. Between her and Amber, she was the one that was closest to Lacey. They balanced each other out so to say.

"I really don't think I care that much about them Am." Piper shrugged.

"Psht, I know you have an opinion about them, but I'm a little worried about Lacey." Amber stated, looking over at Piper.

The older of the two was shocked at what Amber had just stated. What was going on with Amber? She was never this grounded, ever. She was always the hyper one, the crazy one, the one who acted before thinking. When it finally registered in her brain on what Amber had actually stated, she could only question why Amber felt this way. If it made her this serious, it must be something worth hearing rather than something about what ducks do.

"Why would you be worried?" Piper asked.

"Because, I found this video about him. Dude, he was in this fight right, and he totally, practically, demolished his opponent. And some people say that he has a huge temper. Does that sound familiar to you?"

Piper frowned. Amber listened to too many rumors. Whatever happened to don't judge a book by its cover? Or whatever happened to Amber's number one rule, never judge until after two months? But she was right. Back home, before they had to run for their lives, and before the incident, there was someone that actually fitted that description. He was a brute, and everyone feared him.

"Am, calm down okay? Lacey can handle herself, we both know that. She can hold her own fight. Besides, what are the chances that Ryan's going to be like _him_?" Piper asked.

Amber sighed, and her shoulders slumped.

"You're right, maybe I'm being paranoid right now." She sighed and then got up. She looked about ready to run away. "Pip, you know how your shoe was shredded to pieces right?"

"Yea…why?"

"I did it."

Piper stared at Amber for a few moments.

"Amber, you better run for your life."

Thus, another chase started.

_Ryan and Lacey:_

Ryan watched as Lacey examined the lizards that were securely set in their containers. For someone who was quick on her decisions, she was sure taking her sweet time with examining each lizard. He was getting a bit impatient, but for Lacey's sake, he remained calm, and offered his opinion when she asked for it. If she were any other girl, he would've already dragged her out of the store out of impatience.

"Doesn't this one look cute?" He heard Lacey ask. He looked over at the lizard she was looking at, and raised an eyebrow when he saw it. It looked to be a mixture of two different lizard species rather than one with dirty orange scales, and very interesting eyes. It was also about eleven inches he guessed. How did she ever think that it looked cute? Interesting yes, but cute?

"That's a good looking lizard." He stated.

"I think my little lizard hunt is over." Lacey smiled.

"Well, I'm going to go look at the parrot while you buy it, and whatever else it needs okay?"

"Alright."

Ryan nodded before walking towards the parrot that was perched on his branch in a cage. He spent the next few minutes staring at it, and trying to make it say something. He wondered why it was taking so long for Lacey to make her purchase. Purchases from this pet store were usually really quick.

"Well, Ryan, how interesting that we meet again." Scarlett's sultry voice sounded.

Ryan frowned. He had forgotten that she worked here. That was how they had met. He was browsing around, and just happened to meet her.

"Scarlett." He nodded at her.

"Look Ryan, I know that yesterday was just a bad day for you. Forgive and forget right? Well, let's forgive each other, and forget yesterday. We are fuck buddies right?" Scarlett asked with a sly smirk and a playful look in her eyes.

Ryan looked over at his plaything, so to speak, and raised an eyebrow. His eyes darted at Lacey and saw that she was looking at cages, and then looked back at Scarlett. She was still looking at him with those playful grey eyes. Ah, what the hell? She didn't mean anything to him, but she was an amazing bed partner; might as well use her while he could.

"Yea, we're fuck buddies." He smirked, and then laid a rough kiss on her lips.

"Good." She smiled when they pulled away from each other. "I get off at six. Want me to…_come over_?"

"Yeah." Ryan nodded as his eyes drifted downwards.

"Alright, later Ryan." She walked away with a satisfied smirk on her lips.

Ryan smirked, and leaned against the parrot's cage. Scarlett was way too easy sometimes. Though she may think that she was deceiving or something, he could always tell what she was going to say. She was just that damn predicable sometimes. It was nice though. He could get her into his bed without even having to charm her that much. That was a plus in their little 'relationship.'

"Oh my gosh, Gavin?" He heard Lacey exclaim. He looked over, and frowned when he saw her hugging one of the employees closely.

Lacey pulled back from the hug, and grinned. It had been so long since she had last seen her old friend. They had been friends since they were four, but he had moved away when they were starting the eleventh grade, it wasn't that long ago, only about eight and a half months, but it was still a long time. They had lost touch with each other, but now they could reconnect since they were now living near each other again.

"You look good." She nodded as she looked him over. A grin was on her face, and she felt the familiar feeling of her old crush come back. Why oh why did she still have a crush on him? She didn't mind though.

"Thanks, so do you." He grinned back.

He truly had changed from when they were sophomores in Oregon. Back then he had been lanky, hair that reached down to his shoulders, and braces, but now, his hair was very short, he some muscle to his once lanky body, and his teeth were perfectly straight. The thing that actually remained the same was his smile, and his gorgeous, vivid forest green eyes. His personality might've changed, but she didn't know. She wanted to find out though.

"We need to catch up." Lacey stated as she picked up her purchased lizard, and cradled him to her chest.

"We do, um, where do you live?" He asked.

"Where's a pen and paper? I'll give you my address and phone number."

Gavin quickly grabbed a pen and paper, and then handed it over to his long lost friend. He watched as she quickly scribbled down her information, and then hand him the piece of paper.

"Well, I gotta go, call me later okay?" Lacey grinned.

"You know I will." Gavin grinned back.

"Good...Ugh, it's so good to see you again." Lacey hugged him again.

Gavin laughed.

"I know, it's great to see you again, but I'm really sorry for losing touch with you Lacey."

"You know what? It's fine. Call me later."

Lacey took the rest of her purchases, and then walked over to Ryan. She frowned at the frown on his face.

"What?"

* * *

Alright, so here are some **author's notes** :D

**1. I know some of you have noticed Ryan being a little OOC than he was in the movie, hell one of you even messaged me about it. I can't really write a character being a jerk, unfortunately. So throughout this story you'll get to see my lame attempts at writing him as a jerk in the situations that require it :)  
**

**2. This chapter was a bit rushed, I suppose, and since it is about 3 in the morning I have only half a mind of what I have written. **

**3. As usual please review :) **

So goodnight! Or good morning or good afternoon to whichever time zone you live in :D And thanks to those that review! They are much appreciated!


	6. Chapter 6

**Chapter Six: Either Of You Know Him? **

* * *

The next day, Lacey was awoken by her new pet lizard, which she had named Taco. She had been craving tacos at the time, and for some odd reason, the lizard reminded her of one, so it was suiting. And though she only had him for about a day, he seemed to understand all that she was saying. Smart little taco looking lizard he was.

Lacey looked up at the clock and groaned slightly.

"Taco, it's only nine. You need to wake me up when it's twelve."

"You do know that he can't talk back right?" Another voice asked.

Lacey jumped in shock, and looked over to where her bedroom door was. She saw the door closed, and Ryan leaning against it. She let out her breath, and shook her head. She liked him and all, but sometimes when he seemed to show up out of nowhere, it creeped her out.

"Of course I know that." Lacey finally answered, picking Taco up and setting him on the nightstand. "How long have you been standing there?"

Ryan shrugged.

"A couple minutes."

Lacey nodded, but after a few moments, she brought up what happened after the pet store.

"Why did you seem mad yesterday?" She asked, tracing the patterns of her bed sheets.

"Mad? I wasn't mad. I was annoyed at how long you were taking to buy everything." He partly lied, and partly told the truth.

"Then you must get annoyed for a long time because you barely said a word when you drove us home." Lacey raised an eyebrow.

Ryan walked over, and sat down on the bed. To be honest, he was a bit angry at the fact that Gavin Koser seemed to be very close with Lacey. He had seen the guy around sometimes, and he had noticed that Gavin was just an asshole that lied and pretended until he got what he wanted. Ryan didn't voice that out to Lacey though, she seemed to be okay with Gavin. They were old friends after all; at least, that's what he had assumed. Friends never hurt friends right?

"Well, you were pre-occupied with little Taco over there, and you were texting Gavin." Ryan hoped he sounded normal rather than annoyed.

Lacey never noticed the lingering annoyance in her friend's voice.

"Alright, whatever you say." She shrugged, and then gave him a smile. "New shirt?"

"Yeah." He smiled.

"Looks good on you." Lacey complimented.

"Thanks."

Ryan was about to say more, but the ringing of Lacey's phone interrupted him. He watched as Lacey reached over to pick up her phone, and he couldn't help but let his eyes roam over her smooth looking skin.

"Hey ugh, Ryan, can you…leave the room? This is more of a private call…" Lacey stated awkwardly.

He nodded, and chewed on his bottom lip. He stood up, and left the room.

"Hello?" She finally answered.

"Lacey hey, it's Gavin."

"Hey Gavin." She replied with a cheery tone.

Ryan walked into the kitchen, and found Lacey's two friends sitting in the kitchen. It had been almost two weeks, but he hadn't had the chance to actually go into a conversation with them, either of them actually. He could only wonder how a conversation with Piper and Amber would be like. The two seemed to bicker with each other more often than anything. Amusing, but interesting. How did they manage to stay friends?

"Where's Miranda?" He asked, not noticing the older woman there.

"Think she went to the hospital. A friend of hers was injured or something." Piper answered, taking a sip of her cup of apple juice.

"Hey Ryan?" Amber piped up.

"Yes?"

"Do you have any chips?"

"No…"

"Damn." She muttered. Most of her junk food was gone, and no one was offering to drive her. She couldn't drive herself because the last time she drove, many mailboxes, and stop signs were run down to the ground. No need for a repeat of that. She looked back over at Ryan, and saw that he looked like he had a question, but didn't know how to ask it.

"If you have a question, then ask Ryan." Piper stated as she looked in the cupboards for something to eat.

"Do either of you know how close Lacey is to a guy named Gavin?" He asked after a few moments.

"Gavin? Gavin Koser?" Piper questioned, looking over at the blonde.

"Yeah, him." Ryan confirmed.

"Well, from what I can remember, they were really, really close up until the summer of the year before they became juniors. That's when he moved away. Why are you asking anyways? How do you even know about him? Even Amber has trouble remembering him." Piper gestured to a clueless looking Amber, who was staring at the counter top in amazement.

"He works at the pet shop Lacey and I went too yesterday."

"Ah, well, chances are, they're going to just get closer to each other again, and maybe start going out. It's been months since they last saw each other." Piper stated bluntly.

Ryan was about to say something, but the sound of someone's feet bounding down the stairs interrupted him. He looked over as Lacey entered the kitchen.

"Going somewhere?" Piper questioned as she watched her long time friend sit on a stool.

"Yea, Gavin's coming to pick me up. You remember him right?"

"Yea."

"Who is this Gavin you're talking about? I feel so left out." Amber pouted.

"Remember that guy that always used to steal your chips back home? The one with longish hair?"

"Oh him! Dude, ugh, when you come back…can you please buy me some chips? I'm dying!" She whined.

Lacey shook her head, but still smiled.

"I'll get you your chips." Then she looked over Ryan, who was staring at the floor. "Ryan…the floor doesn't move…just like Taco doesn't talk."

"You were talking to Taco?" Amber asked Ryan.

"What? No. Lace was talking to Taco." Ryan replied once he ridded himself of his thoughts.

"Why?"

"He woke me up too early." Lacey answered.

* * *

You know the drill xD


	7. Chapter 7

**Chapter Seven: Nice Day**

* * *

It had been around nine thirty that Gavin came to pick her up. When he had arrived, and gotten out of the car, Lacey could already feel the tension that bubbled up when Gavin and Ryan saw each other. The tension was so great that she felt awkward, just like Amber and Piper. The trio had no idea what to say or do because the two guys had taken to glare, and subtly insult each other. The girls had only looked at each other with certain looks on their faces.

It was only when Ryan's phone rang that the confrontation had ended.

"So how've you guys been?" Gavin asked after Ryan had sauntered away.

"Oh you know, just feeling a little awkward right now." Piper replied sarcastically.

Lacey sighed, and ran a hand through her raven colored locks. She made a mental note to _never _let Ryan and Gavin get near each other ever again. This might've been the second time, since she'd been here, that they met, but Lacey could already tell that they could never get along. However, the seventeen year old had to wonder what had happened for them to practically hate each other. She, and probably her two friends, could sense that something had to have happened between the two guys.

"Let's just go Gavin." Lacey suggested after making eye contact with Ryan. His eyes, and expression, told her that they'd talk later.

"Sure Lacey." Keeping his vivid forest green eyes on Lacey, he followed her to his car.

The day had started out so good before this altercation. When they had woken up, the sun was shining brilliantly, and the day felt warm and good. They also had the idea of maybe just chilling at Ryan's home before Gavin came. Obviously that wasn't going to happen now.

"Finally…he's gone." Ryan's voice sounded behind them.

"And yet, you don't sound all that happy." Piper noted with a raise of her eyebrow.

"He needs someone to kick his ass." Ryan stated coldly before walking towards his own home and away from Amber and Piper.

Gavin got on his nerves just as easily as Scarlett did. Ryan clenched his hand into a fist, and tried to calm himself down. That imbecile had no right to insult him! Who the hell did he think he was? Gavin Koser was _nothing, _but Ryan had to give the dude some props for stating very discretely that _he _was a numbskull. Ryan was no numbskull, and he could've easily pounded that cocky little bastard into the ground faster than a cheetah could take step in a frenzied run.

Ryan kicked off his shoes as he entered his abode, and jogged slightly up the stairs to his bedroom. Maybe a little nap would get his mind off of the dispute with Gavin. If there were anymore altercations, Ryan would probably end up blowing up in the person's face.

Once he opened his bedroom door, a smooth voice flowed through his ears.

"Hey there Ryan." Scarlett greeted with a slight wave of her hand.

"Scarlett." Ryan acknowledged with a slight frown. "How the hell did you get in here?"

Scarlett smiled slightly. She'd been bored, and had come over in hopes that she and Ryan could…have some _fun_ with each other. Seeing him right now, however, the grey eyed blonde instantly knew that she shouldn't push his buttons…at least not to the fullest extent. Scarlett didn't want to be the target of his anger again. His temper had always seemed nastier when she was around.

Slowly, Scarlett crawled off of the bed, and sauntered slowly over to Ryan.

"You're so tense baby." She pouted lightly, and ran her fingers softly down his chest.

Ryan said nothing, but pushed Scarlett slightly off of him. He shot her a glare as he sat down on his bed. There was no doubt that he was _not _in the mood to see her. Why couldn't she, for once, ever just listen to him, and stay the hell away until he needed her?

"Answer my question Scarlett, how did you get in here?" Ryan asked slowly as his lips curled up into a scowl.

"The door was unlocked." Scarlett answered; the corners of her lips twitching into a frown.

Ryan was about to bark something at her, but he stopped when Scarlett had suddenly straddled him. He turned his gaze upwards, and met her grey eyes. Ryan saw the lust in them, saw the yearning, but he didn't care. All he wanted was for her to be gone.

"Get out." He growled, pushing her off of him.

"But Ryan-" The shorter of the two whined before she was interrupted.

"I mean it Scarlett, out."

Scarlett went to lean against the wall, and crossed her arms. There was a defiant scowl set on her glossed up lips, and her eyes shone with insolence. She wasn't going to leave until she _got_ what _she _wanted, and what she wanted was just a simple fuck. Wasn't that hard to do, right?

"Make me!"

Scarlett suddenly let out of a shriek, and cowered down a bit when Ryan's fist collided with the wall right beside her head. She hadn't expected that to be his response. She had expected a more…_sexual _response, rather than an angry one. But there was no doubt now that she was scared, if not terrified.

"I'm not going to mess around Scarlett, get the _fuck _out…_now_!" Ryan shouted, making Scarlett flinch, and gaze at him frighteningly.

She didn't say one more word as she quickly scurried out of the room.

Ryan watched as she did so, and then sighed…he definitely needed that nap now.

_**Lacey and Gavin: **_

The duo had just got done with having some fun at the beach, and were now headed towards somewhere to eat. The slight tension from earlier that morning had dissipated and relaxation took its place. They had spent their time at the beach just splashing each other in the water, swimming, and playing tag. It was a good time to say the least.

"Lacey, you'd have to be an idiot to actually like him." Gavin snorted, taking a sip out of his soda.

"Come on Gavin, you promised that you wouldn't bring that up." Lacey muttered, a frown now marring on her features.

"I know, I know, but just how the hell can you like a jerk like him?"

Lacey's frown deepened, and she refused to answer. She only shook her head, and looked away. The place they were eating at had such a cheery feeling, and here she was feeling a bit gloomy. Taking a bite out of her burger, Lacey looked anywhere except at Gavin.

"Do you wanna go to the movies after this?" Gavin asked, with a slightly apologetic smile.

A pair of dark brown orbs met a pair of vivid forest green ones, and a small smile etched onto Lacey's features. How could she not return the smile? It was just so…adorable, almost, on his handsome features.

"Yeah, sure." She nodded her head, and quickly finished her burger.

About ten minutes later, they were leaving the diner, and driving towards the movie theaters. Silence had accompanied them to the car, and was now overcoming their sense to make conversation. Both of them were a bit lost in their thoughts. Lacey was thinking about certain things and people, while Gavin thought about Lacey…and how he was playing her a bit.

"So what movie do you want to see?" Gavin finally asked.

"Let's go see…Cars 2, or something." Lacey shrugged while offering a small smile as to lighten up the mood.

"You're such a little kid!" Gavin laughed.

"Can you blame me?" Lacey punched him lightly on the arm.

Gavin only smiled, and shook his head.

"This was a fun day wasn't it Lacey?"

"Yeah, it was." Lacey smiled.

_**Amber and Piper: **_

"You should definitely go do it." Amber nodded with a serious expression on her face.

"Why me?"

"Cause you're the oldest."

"…Oh Am…" Piper sighed, and shook her head.

What was the subject of their little debate? Why, who goes and feeds Taco of course. It was afternoon, and Taco hadn't been fed for a couple hours now. He needed to eat.

"Fine, I'll just go feed him." Piper grumbled.

The nineteen year old stood up, and walked towards the stairs. She slowly climbed the stairs, but kept her eyes trained on the TV. After a few seconds, Piper walked quickly into Lacey's room. When she opened the door, however, a scream nearly ripped through. Laying a hand on her beating heart, Piper breathed in an out while staring wide eyed at Ryan…who was grinning sheepishly at her.

"Sorry Pip, didn't mean to scare ya." He chuckled.

"How the hell did you get in here?" Piper questioned once she figured out what words to say.

Piper watched as he nodded towards the open window that looked out towards his own window.

"Ryan, next time, just give some type of warning that you're here. If you don't, at least don't stand next to the door like this." Piper crossed her arms.

"Sure thing."

"Anyways, I need to feed Taco."

"I already fed him."

Piper stopped mid stride, and looked back at him.

"Why are you here?"

Ryan shrugged. He really didn't know why he was here. Maybe it was boredom. Maybe it had been on impulse. He really didn't know. Besides, Lacey's room felt more…cozier in some aspect. Plus, if she came back during the night, she would get a nice surprise; him just laying her on her bed relaxingly.

"Well, just take care of Taco, and help yourself to anything in Lacey's room…almost anything." Piper smirked lightly, and then left the room.

"Feed him?" Amber questioned once Piper came back down the stairs.

"Yup." She answered as she plopped down on the couch.

* * *

*high five* :]


	8. Chapter 8

**Chapter Eight: Food, Good or Bad? **

* * *

It was about eleven in the evening when Lacey returned home, and the first thing that happened when she took one step into her aunt's home, was an apple flying towards her head. Once things had been cleared up, Lacey quickly jogged up the stairs, and towards her bedroom. The seventeen year old was looking forward to just hopping onto her cozy bed, and fall into a deep slumber.

Opening the door, and turning on the light, Lacey jumped a couple inches into the air.

"Damn it Ryan!" She hissed with her hand over her heart. "What the hell?"

Ryan only laughed at her. He had been laying on her bed for a while now. From the time that Piper found him to now, Ryan had eaten some of the snacks she kept in there, played around with Taco, and took another nap...he needed something better to do with his time.

"Sorry Lace." He apologized with a smile.

"How long have you been here?" Lacey asked as she stepped into her room, and threw her stuff onto a chair.

"A couple hours."

"Don't you have your own home?"

"Yea…"

Lacey shook her head, and went into her closet. She closed the door, stripped out of her clothes, and pulled on a pair of shorts, and a tank top. Whether Ryan was going to sleep over or not was his decision, she was just ready for a good night's sleep.

"So what'd you do today?" Ryan scooted over as Lacey hopped onto the bed.

"Go to the beach, just hang out." Lacey yawned.

Ryan watched as her eyelids drooped down, and laughed silently as she fought to stay awake. After a few moments, she had succumbed to her slumber, and was now falling into a deep sleep. He smiled softly, and pulled the blankets over them. It was nice to just be like this. Him just laying in her bed, and the two of them talking and enjoying each other's company before one of them fell asleep. It was something that he had never really done before. He liked it though.

But what was it about this girl that made him feel so…happy? While he was sometimes a jerk, and an ass, Lacey made him want to be nice, but then again, she was a nice person. It was hard to be a jerk to someone that acted a bit childish and wanted to joke around all day. But what was it about her that made him care so much?

He mulled over the thought before falling asleep himself.

_**Sebastian Diamond: **_

"You still don't know where she is?" His voice was as hard as a diamond, and his tone was as icy as the arctic.

One of the spies, Martin, visibly flinched when Sebastian's furious eyes met his. The other spy, Emmanuel, was calm and collected when his employer's eyes met his. His eyes, which were a mixture of dark grey and a vibrant green, made them both shift uncomfortably though. If they weren't two of his most valuable spies, he'd surely have them fired, and then later on, hunt them down just to kill them. That was how vicious and murderous Sebastian was.

If there was a good bone in his body, it was surely microscopic.

"Sir, we've asked, we've searched, no one knows where she and her friends left too." Emmanuel stated calmly as he looked Sebastian dead in the eyes.

Those orbs were empty pools of grey-green that were devoid of any emotion other than anger. The only time there was any other sentiment in those orbs…was when he was killing someone. Sebastian Diamond was a man to never mess with. There was a reason why so many people feared him.

Sebastian sat back, and rubbed his chin in mock thought. The enraged scowl that had been on his handsome, scarred features had disappeared, and was replaced with a light frown. His ice cold eyes were now devoid of anything other than impassiveness. The air around them had changed from a hurricane of ferocity and rage to a desert of collective emotions.

For the spies, they would've preferred him to show his anger because when he became pokerfaced like this, _nothing _was predictable_. _

"Sir?" Martin mumbled softly. He was clearly shaking lightly. "What…what do you want us t-to do now?"

Emmanuel's eyes darted towards Martin, and he clenched his jaw lightly. There was no telling what Sebastian would want them to do. It could be a number of things. The fact that Martin was shaking like this hinted that he was still afraid of the boss. Poor dude.

"First off, I want you, Martin, to get the hell _out_ of my office. Second, call in James, he'd be better suited." Sebastian's were spoken with deliberate harshness and slowness.

Martin's eyes widened slightly, and he quickly nodded his head. As he exited the room, he made a mental note to just talk to Emmanuel later.

Once the door closed, Sebastian shifted his attention to Emmanuel.

"I expected more from you."

"I know."

"How could you _not _find anything?"

"Lacey's good at covering her tracks, you know that. You know what she's done. Plus, she's good at hiding from people." Emmanuel stated slowly.

Sebastian nodded slowly. Lacey was a tricky little thing at times. A light scowl set on his lips, and he drummed his fingers on his desk. He was contemplating ways to get Lacey, and her two friends. He would've used Piper or Amber if they were here, but since they weren't, he couldn't. Who else did Lacey care about that was here?

Suddenly, a cruel smile etched onto Sebastian's lips…

"I have the perfect person to use against her."

Emmanuel only stared curiously at his boss.

_**Lacey and Friends: **_

Sunlight filtered through the blinds of the window, and flooded the room with strips of sunlight. For one of the lumps on the bed, a strip of sunlight was blinding him. Ryan groaned lightly, and closed his eyes as he buried himself deeper into the blankets. As he did so, he felt the body next to him shift, and snuggle closer to his own. The movement resulted in Ryan absentmindedly wrapping his arm around Lacey, and pulling her closer.

The blonde felt a hand and a leg drape over his body, and a head making itself comfortable on his shoulder.

"Is it morning already?" Her tone was still laced with slumber.

"It is…unfortunately…" Ryan mumbled drowsily.

"Whatever, go back…back to sleep…"

The duo was about to fall back into their slumber, but the sound of the door opening stopped them. An aroma of various foods wafted through the air, and into their noses. They then felt something being put on the bed. Both opened their eyes, and saw Piper rolling her eyes them.

"Amber forced me to give you guys food. You two should really wake up though, it's like eleven already." Piper scoffed in amusement before walking out of the room.

Ryan still stayed as he was, but Lacey got up, and crawled towards the food. The aroma was too great for her to ignore. Picking up a syrup covered waffle, she took one bite, and immediately felt herself awaken a little more. She nudged Ryan with her foot, and nodded towards the food.

Food was always a nice thing to help awaken a person.

_**Sebastian and Emmanuel: **_

"You're sure she lives here?" Sebastian muttered.

"Yup, Kia Kyoto is definitely here." Emmanuel nodded, and then saw a little girl come out of the foster home. "See, there she is, just like I told you."

"She looks hungry. Do you have the food?"

Emmanuel nodded, and held up the bag of food that they would offer her. The spy looked towards his boss, and once he saw the nod, started to approach the young eight year old. He'd be the one to give her the food, and coax her while Sebastian would be the one to take her.

"Hey there, you look hungry, want some food?" He asked with a gentle smile on his face.

Kia, almost a spitting image of her sister, shook her head.

"My sister told me not to talk to strangers, or take anything from them." The only difference between the sisters was that Kia had a lighter hair color and eye color.

"Alright, well, my name's Emmanuel, and you are?"

"Kia!" The little girl grinned, revealing some teeth that were still growing in. She was adorable in a way.

"See, we're not strangers anymore." Emmanuel chuckled. "So do you want this burger?"

"Sure…" Kia accepted shyly.

The twenty one year old watched as she hesitantly reached out to take the burger that he held out. She seemed so…_small _compared to him. When she finally took the burger, he could see Sebastian from the corner of his eye. His boss was close to them, but not close enough to where Kia would notice him. Sebastian needed to hurry up. Emmanuel was about to say something, but in the blink of an eye, Sebastian had the little girl knocked out.

"Damn, I didn't even see you move towards her." Emmanuel was almost perplexed, but knew that he shouldn't be.

"Oh well, let's go. I don't want anyone seeing us." Sebastian stated, looking around the almost isolated area.

Following his boss towards the car, Emmanuel gave the area a look over. The area was bleak, wet, and practically dead. He shook his head, and got into the car. No time to dwell on such trivial things.

He took the other burger out of the bag, and began to eat.

Food was the culprit in this situation.

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You can probably guess from this chapter...that I'm hungry...teehee ^.^


	9. Chapter 9

**Chapter Nine: A Frightening Call **

* * *

It was now noon, and everyone was out in Lacey's backyard. The sun was shining brilliantly, and embraced everyone with its warm rays. The wind only blew lightly; making the day seemingly perfect for doing outdoor activities such as going to the beach, or shooting your friends with a water gun filled with ice cold water.

"Amber!" A chorus of voices shouted as the hyper-active eighteen year old sprayed them.

"What?" She asked innocently with a smile on her face.

"I'll go get us some towels."

"I'll come too…"

Lacey and Ryan both stood up, and walked into the house. The next thing they heard were shouts, laughs, and threats. Yup, there was never really a day where there were no threats being thrown at Amber by Piper. Both of them shook their heads.

"Have those two ever…_not_ been like this?"

"Nope, for as long as I've known them, never."

Lacey thought back to when she first met them. They had always argued, but stayed as close as close could be. She had been a bit perplexed by them and their actions toward each other, but never thought anything of it. They had accepted her as a friend more generously than any other person.

"Can you just get some sodas while I get the towels?" Lacey questioned as she hopped onto the first step of the stairs.

"Yea, sure."

Ryan walked into the kitchen while Lacey hopped up the stairs to find some spare towels that were clean. As he looked through the fridge, the chime of the doorbell going off sounded softly.

"Can you get that?" Lacey shouted.

"Yea!"

Ryan placed the sodas on the counter, and walked leisurely towards the front door. He outstretched his arms, and cracked some bones before opening the door. When Ryan saw who was standing on the front porch, he wished that he hadn't opened it.

"What do _you _want?" Ryan questioned coldly.

"Lacey of course." Gavin's smile was almost _smug _in a way.

Ryan raised an eyebrow. Gavin's tone had an underline meaning in it, and Ryan didn't like it. The way he was just so damn smug was irritating in a way.

"Get out of here Koser." Ryan growled, his tone was cold and his eyes burned intently into the vivid forest green orbs that belonged to Gavin.

"Make me." Gavin challenged with a defiant glint in his eyes.

No matter what, Gavin would always have this habit of trying to challenge Ryan. He didn't know why, but it was just a natural thing. Maybe it was just competition. Maybe it was just the ego…or maybe it was just something else.

Either way, this wasn't going to end anytime soon.

_**Upstairs: **_

Lacey searched through the hallway closet for some towels, but grunted in dismay when she noticed that there weren't any. Letting a soft sigh pass her lips, she closed the door, and scratched her head. Thoughts ran through her head on where they could be, but no solution came to mind.

"Morning Lacey." Miranda greeted with a smile. "Are you looking for something?"

"Morning Auntie." Lacey smiled as she turned to face her aunt. "I'm looking for a couple towels."

"Oh, they're in the laundry room honey."

Lacey deadpanned. How could she not have thought of that room? The seventeen year old ran her fingers through her long hair, and rolled her eyes. Lacey nodded towards her aunt, and began walking towards the room with Miranda following behind her.

"Lacey, I've been needing to ask you something." Miranda stated as she leaned against the door frame of the laundry room.

"Okay…what is it?" Lacey wasn't paying that much attention, she was focused on getting the towels that were under a mountain of folded clothes.

"How are your parents?" The question was hesitant.

Lacey stopped what she was doing, and looked over at her aunt. Her eyes quickly darted back to the towels that she had grabbed, and she slowly pulled the pieces of large cloths from the mound of garments. She thought about the question considerately and a bit tentatively.

How were her parents doing? Well, she had no idea. She hadn't spoken to them in so long. Lacey had a bad relationship with her parents. She even tried to run away from them, but always seemed to go back right to that dreaded house. She never knew what compelled her to keep going back.

"They're okay." Lacey sounded uncertain and the words seemed to roll off her tongue in a foreign way; as if she felt odd too even utter those two terms.

"Right, because when I called them, they were drunk out of their minds and saying that they didn't have a daughter." Miranda raised her eyebrow, and her eyes shone with concern for her niece.

Lacey sighed. She wasn't surprised that they would say that. It wasn't like they _liked _to acknowledge her, in fact, it was quite the opposite. They _despised _to recognize her as their own child. It hurt to know at first, but Lacey quickly got used to the treatment that her parents gave her.

"They're really fine Auntie. Sure they drink a lot, but they're alive and well, sort of." She muttered, trying to get off the subject of her parents.

Miranda sighed. She heard the pleading tone in her niece's voice to just drop the subject. She honestly didn't want to drop the subject, but for Lacey's sake, she did and asked another question; one that would make her feel better, and get her mind off of her old home.

"So how do you like it here Lacey?"

"It's a nice place, nothing like Oregon, but it's nice. I like it." Lacey was relieved at the subject change.

"That's great honey." Miranda smiled. "But, I have to leave for a business trip soon. So you and girls are going to be okay staying her by yourselves for the next couple of days right?"

"Yea, we'll be fine Auntie." Lacey assured with a nod of her head.

Miranda was about to reply when the sudden sounds of two voices yelling violently at each other emitted from downstairs. The duo looked at each other for a split second before hastily hopping out of the laundry room, and going down the stairs. The sound of two bodies thrashing around was also heard.

Once they were downstairs, Lacey groaned in disappointment. Ryan and Gavin both seemed to have taken a good beating from each other.

Shaking her head, Miranda began to lecture the two angrily.

"This is _not _acceptable!"

Everyone covered their ears.

_**Sebastian and Emmanuel: **_

The air was as musky and stale as a swamp's ambiance. With each breath that they took, it seemed as if it were getting more challenging to receive oxygen in their lungs. The atmosphere that surrounded them felt as uneasy and unstable as a panicked person filled with fear.

With each step that they took, the two men could feel their shoes sinking a little bit more into the ground. The rain that had fallen just minutes before their arrival must've made the forest floor more soggy and spongy.

The dark fogginess that covered the sky made the scene even more mysterious and even a bit perplexing. The scene before them could've even been mistaken for a setting from a suspenseful horror movie.

"Are you sure we're going in the right direction?" Emmanuel's voice was gruff and breathless. The air seemed to be drying up his throat more so than helping him gather oxygen to send down to his lungs.

"Of course I'm sure." Sebastian barked back lowly. Turning his head slightly to look at his employee, he could see that Emmanuel was tired, and that the little girl that he was still carrying, was still slumbering soundly; completely unaware of the plans that he had set for her, and her sister.

"Can we rest for a bit?"

Sebastian scowled deeply, but agreed with the younger man. The two stopped in a clearing, and Sebastian could hear one body being placed gently on the ground, and then another dropping onto the forest floor. His grey-green eyes rolled, and scanned the area.

Seeing that there was nothing around that he should be worried about, the twenty three year old took to just stare out into the sky.

Dark clouds loomed in the sky, they were gloomy and billowing, but also…_peaceful_ seeming to him. The puffs of shady fogginess roamed the skies like cattle grazing through an empty field. Thunder rolled throughout the insides of the shadowy veils like blood racing through the veins of a person; their loud roars bringing harmony and contentment to his overworked mind and body.

Lightning flashed quicker than a cobra's strike, but disappearing faster than the mind could comprehend. Appearing for only mere seconds before vanishing; making it seem like an illusion that the eyes tricked the mind into witnessing. Its bony fingers strike out onto the horizon. It seemed as if it were searching for something, but could not find what it was looking for.

Closing his eyes for just a mere second, and letting his body relax for once, Sebastian felt the tiny drops of rain pelt his body and everything that inhabited the area.

"Let's go Emmanuel." He barked after a few moments. "I don't need the kid getting sick."

"Why do you care?"

"If the kid gets sick, then someone has to go to town. If either one of _us_ goes to town, people are going to question." Sebastian's glare was harsh, and his eyes told his employee to not question it any further.

Emmanuel sighed, and nodded his head. He picked up Kia, and for a short second, felt sympathy course through his body before it vanished. The twenty one year old continued to follow his boss, and made sure that Kia was shielded from the rain.

He could feel her little body shivering slightly because of the wind that blew callously all around them. Emmanuel held her close, and felt her stop trembling.

About half an hour later, they arrived at Sebastian's cabin.

"Why do you even own a cabin?" Emmanuel wondered with a perplexed look on his handsome features.

"It was my grandfather's." Sebastian muttered in reply.

Once they were inside the cabin, the twenty three year old created a fire, and the cabin slowly warmed up. The room was silent except for the soft crackling of fire, and the slow breathing of three people. Neither of the two men said one word, but both knew that things would go Sebastian's way soon enough.

Lacey loved Kia, and would do anything to keep her safe. Obviously, a foster home wasn't enough to hide Kia and keep her safe.

"How exactly are you planning to use Kia against Lacey when you don't even know where she is? Or her number for that matter?" Emmanuel gazed at his employer with cold eyes.

"That is easy." Sebastian smiled wryly. "Apparently our dear Lacey is hiding out where my cousin lives."

"How…?"

"He was complaining, and things started to slip out from his little mouth." A cold chuckle rumbled through the predator's chest.

Seconds later, Kia started to awaken from her long slumber.

_**Lacey and Friends: **_

"I can't believe you'd start a fight with Gavin." Lacey sighed as she sat against the pillar that was outside of her front door with Ryan next to her.

"You don't sound all that disappointed." Ryan noted.

Lacey shrugged lazily. She wasn't all that disappointed. After Miranda had lectured them, Lacey had been left alone with Gavin for a couple minutes, and they had gotten into a little argument about her friendship with Ryan. During said argument, Gavin had left a bruise on her upper left arm. Her sleeve covered it up so that no one could see it however.

Lacey felt Ryan's arm snaking around her shoulders, and she instinctively moved closer to him. She laid her head on his shoulder, and heard the soft sounds of the wind rustle through the wind chimes; creating a melodious sound.

Silence etched all around them before the sudden shrill of Lacey's phone made them both jump.

"Hello?" Lacey answered while trying to stop her racing heart.

"LACEY!"

At the sound of her name, Lacey froze, and a wave of dread rushed through her; creating goose-bumps that decorated her skin. Her mind, once at peace, was now crumbling down, and exploding with scenarios that all ended horribly. Lacey gripped onto Ryan's hand tightly.

"Hello Lacey." A much calmer voice greeted pleasantly.

The seventeen year old's blood froze over, and her phone slipped out of her hand; dropping to the ground with a quick, thunderous reverberation.

"_No..._"

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Haha thanks to all my readers and to the ones that reviewed, I appreciate it so much! *gives you all cookies and chips* :D

And to** Princess BelleBlack**: Sure I'll read your story if you translate it :D

_If you're wondering why the title of this story has changed, well...I have no idea, I just felt like changing it _:P

**Random Note: I have slight writer's block now, so forgive me for slightly slow updates, and badly written chapters... like this one**

**Anyways, please review! Reviews are like candy; can never have enough of them :) Thanks!  
**


	10. Chapter 10

**Chapter Ten: Memories**

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The phone call hadn't lasted long, not at all. After _he _had said those two words, the call had ended. Lacey knew what that meant; the call had been nothing but a small, miniscule warning. Sebastian had nothing to say to her just yet. The call had done its purpose nonetheless.

Lacey felt her fear coursing through her veins.

Ryan had tried to get her to tell him what was wrong, but she couldn't. She just couldn't bring herself to re-live the horrid memories that wafted through her brain. Lacey had walked away and left Ryan standing on the porch in confusion. What she hadn't realized was that he was _worried_ about her.

"This is crazy." Lacey muttered to herself while sitting down on her bed. "How could he have found me?"

She huffed in frustration, and fell back onto her bed. Lacey silently curled into a ball, and hid her face in the palms of her hands. Was it possible for her to pack her things, and silently leave Orlando without anyone noticing? Maybe...but that may cause Piper, Amber, and maybe Ryan to search for her; putting themselves into even more danger.

As Lacey dwelled on her thoughts about how to keep her friends safe, and how to handle Sebastian, her memories led her to different thoughts.

_Kia. _

At the thought of her little sister's name, Lacey closed her eyes and a lone tear escaped silently from her eyes. Memories of little Kia flooded her mind; one in particular replayed itself vividly in her thoughts.

_Three Years Ago: _

"_Lacey! Watch me climb this tree!" Kia shouted in excitement as she latched onto the trunk of the tree, and began to quickly climb up. _

"_Be careful Kia! I don't want you to get hurt or anything." Lacey watched Kia carefully from where she stood underneath the tree. _

"_Okay Lacey!" _

_Lacey smiled, it was almost a sad smile in a way. Their parents had promised a day of family fun, but somehow, had forgotten and ran off to an unknown secluded area; leaving Lacey to try lie to Kia about their parents' whereabouts, and to make up for the absence of the two adults. _

_Lacey's eyes drifted close for a moment, and for a moment, she was at peace. _

_The summer breeze softly glided through the dark wisps of her hair, and embraced her in its warm grip. The soft wind slithered between the elder tree's leaves, making them rustle in a soft, easeful harmony that could put even the tensest of people at ease. It was harmony at its best. _

"_Lacey! Play tag with me!" Kia grinned that familiar toothless grin at her older sister. _

_Lacey opened her eyes, and smiled back at her little sister. It was always humorous to see little Kia smile and see most of her baby teeth gone and being replaced by her permanent teeth. _

"_Hmm…I don't know Kia." Lacey pretended to seem tired. When she saw Kia frown a little, a ghost of a smile appeared on her lips, and she quickly tagged Kia. "Catch me if you can!" _

"_Hey!" Kia laughed. _

_Lacey darted away, and at some points, stopped and waited for Kia to catch up before running off again. Kia's much shorter legs put her at a disadvantage to speedily chase after her. It was like an ant trying to pursue a feline. The two of them played until the sun began to drift closer and closer towards the horizon. Finally, when the sun was on the brink of disappearing, and the siblings were on the verge of exhaustion, Kia tackled her older sister to the ground. _

_Lacey and Kia sat beneath the tree Kia had climbed earlier, and tried to gather oxygen back into their lungs. _

"_Lacey." Kia mumbled tiredly. _

"_Hmm?" _

"_Why didn't mommy and daddy come with us?" Kia looked innocently up at Lacey. _

_Lacey sighed. She had been anticipating the question, and had tried to think of some lie that she hadn't used before, but come up with practically nothing. She always hated lying to Kia, but didn't want her to know the truth.  
_

"_I don't know Kia." She hoped it was the last lie that would ever pass her lips. Kia didn't need to know about the horrible habits that their parents were relapsing back to. _

_Lacey didn't look down at Kia, but she could already tell that her younger sister had her doubts. The fourteen year old sighed softly in relief when Kia didn't question her any further, and decided to just hug her abdomen. Lacey softly rubbed Kia's back, and relaxed against the cool tree trunk. _

"_Are you ever gonna leave me like mommy and daddy do?" _

_The question caught Lacey off guard, and for a moment, she had nothing to say. After a couple more seconds, she finally came back to reality, and answered. _

"_I won't leave you Kia." Lacey stated firmly. "You're my little sister, and I'm not going to let anything happen to you." _

"_I love you Lacey." Kia whispered softly. _

_Lacey shifted a little, and picked up Kia so that she could cradle her little sister against her body. The bond between them was strong, and they were as close as ever. Lacey could feel Kia gripping onto the material of shirt as if she would disappear if she were to let go. _

_The silence wrapped around them like a blanket. _

"_I love you too Kia." Lacey replied back softly after a while. "And I'll always protect you…no matter what." _

_It was a silent vow that Lacey wanted to keep forever. _

_End._

How could she have broken that promise? How did she go from being the protective sister to being the one that left her in a foster home? She should've thought about things a whole lot better. Lacey should've thought about what would've happened to Kia _after _leaving her at the foster home.

Before Lacey knew it, tears of anger and disappointment were sliding down her face. She should've just taken Kia with her to come here. The little eight year old would've been much safer considering Piper, Amber, and herself were here. Plus, Ryan would've helped to protect her too.

Feeling something nudge her, Lacey looked over to see Taco lying on her bed. She smiled sadly, and picked up the little lizard. Taco seemed to purr in its lizard like way, and softly rub against her hand. Lacey felt a little better, and decided to just let him roam around her room.

It was only a couple minutes later did the sound of a soft tapping get her attention. Turning towards the window, Lacey was a little amused to see Ryan waving towards her. She waved back, and walked over to open the window for her friend.

Lacey could tell her face mirrored her slight confusion and amusement.

"You could've used the front door you know." Lacey sat down on her bed.

"I know, but this way is much more fun." Ryan smiled at her, but then his smile slowly receded when he noticed her slightly red eyes. "Lace…have you been crying?"

When Lacey only looked away, and never answered the question, he sat down next to her. Ryan brushed away loose strands of her hair, and forced her to look at him. He quickly noted that her cheeks were still damp, and her brown eyes seemed as dull as an unsharpened pencil. He saw that she seemed tired as well.

"I don't wanna talk about it right now." Lacey stated firmly, giving him a look that basically told him to not push it. "Lay with me?"

Reluctantly, Ryan pushed away his curiosity, and laid down on the bed. He wrapped an arm around Lacey's waist and held her close. He had been hoping to persuade her to tell him what was going on. His curiosity was relentless, and was eating at him. What was so bad that she couldn't tell him? Hell, he'd even asked Piper and Amber and they flat out refused to speak of it either; telling him to question Lacey about it.

But as he held Lacey in his arms right now, he could feel his inquiringness slip away. What was it about her that made him feel so...like this? At ease, relaxed..._protective...happy. _He pondered on this thought for a bit while rubbing her back softly, and absentmindedly entwining his fingers with hers.

Lacey curled her body close to his, and let the soft beating of his heart steal her away into her dreams.

_**Sebastian, Emmanuel, and**_

_**Kia: **_

Kia had sat in the corner of the cabin for most of the day with her arms wrapped around her knees. The only time she had left her corner was when she had to go use the bathroom. She hadn't said a word since that phone call. She was terrifyingly afraid as to what the two men that kidnapped her could do.

Throughout the entire day, she had tried not to cry, but it was hard. She was scared, and the two men were petrifying to her.

Kia wondered where her sister was. Lacey had promised to take care of her, to protect her. Where was she? The eight year old could still hear Lacey's voice in the back of her mind giving her some words of wisdom…

"_Don't be afraid Kia…" _

She had been afraid of her parents when they had been on a violent streak; whether it was with each other, Lacey, or herself. Lacey had been there to take care of her, and told her that being afraid wouldn't get her anywhere.

"_I'll always keep you safe Kia." _

Where was she now? Lacey wasn't here to keep her safe. She had tried, but ultimately, she had failed. Lacey was hiding off somewhere, and here she was stuck with two men that wanted to kill Lacey.

Suddenly, she saw a pair of shoes in front of her. She screamed a little when she felt herself being picked up. Kia looked up, and stared into a pair of intimidating forest green-smoky grey eyes. Soft whimpers escaped from her, and she shook lightly as he held her up. Kia noticed a ghostly sneer curling on his lips.

From the corner of her eye, she saw the other man just sitting in a chair; watching them. He looked cautious. Maybe he could help her…

"Did your sister tell you anything before she left?" His tone alone made her entire shiver.

"I don't remember!" She quickly shouted, hoping that her answer was sufficient. It was not.

Sebastian gripped her more tightly, and Kia cried out in pain. She wasn't used to feeling this type of pain anymore. It made her wonder if he was going to kill her. That one thought alone made her want to bawl her eyes out, and beg for mercy.

"Okay…maybe I should ask the question…" The other man quickly intervened. Emmanuel didn't want his boss to do anything stupid...although that was practically impossible. Sebastian was too _calculative_. He wouldn't _risk_ it...but there was _always_ that chance.

Kia felt herself being dropped on the ground. She made a sound that indicated that she was hurt, but other than that, did nothing else. The eight year old felt the familiar burning of tears brimming her eyes, but refused to let them fall. Kia didn't want to show them that they were scaring her…even though they probably _knew_ they did.

"Hey Kia…" A much softer and nicer voice drifted through her ears. "We just wanna know if Lacey said anything to you…can you tell us?"

Slowly, Kia looked up. She stared at the man that was kneeled down in front of her, and shook her head. She remembered a few things, but other than that, most of the night had been a blur. She had been drowsy, and everything had happened in a rush.

Sebastian growled lowly. His intention on this had been to find out if Lacey had any plans of running off to more than one place.

Obviously this was _worthless. _

"Leave the kid. She's _useless_ for answering these questions." Sebastian muttered.

Emmanuel looked towards his boss, and nodded his head. Looking back over at Kia, he shook his head, and stood up. He walked after his boss, and left Kia to sit in the corner alone once again.

"Lacey…please save me." Kia whimpered quietly to herself as her tears fell like rivers.

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**Leave reviews...it makes me less hungry ^^  
**


	11. Chapter 11

**Chapter Eleven: Heated Dreams **

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_Ryan's Dream: _

_Ryan sighed as he slightly spun the cup in his hand to make the water spin. He had just got done working out, and was now sitting on a couch in his living room. Things were really boring at the moment. He had just kicked Scarlett out of his home after finally telling the naïve girl that she was nothing more than a mere piece of scum to him, and he had done it without sleeping with her; his self control over his body was better now. _

_He was done with her. No more Scarlett. _

_She hadn't been happy with him, but he didn't care. He just wanted her gone, and to never bug him again, which hopefully she'll get the idea, and move on. _

"_Hey Ryan, how's it going?" _

_Ryan looked up, and nodded towards Piper. As the days progressed, the two were now friends rather than two people that just tolerated each other. Piper was a good person to go to with any type of problem. She gave good advice, and she was a great listener. Ryan was happy to know that he had her to go to if he ever had a problem. She was a bit blunt at times, but he handled the bluntness well. It was one of the things he liked about her._

"_I'm fine." _

_Piper took a look at the water that Ryan was just swirling around, and shook her head._

"_Are you actually going to drink the water or just watch it as it swirls around like that?" She questioned. _

"_It's entertaining, and if you were in my position, after just kicking Scarlett out of my life, then you'd be doing the same thing." Ryan stated. _

"_Yea whatever Ryan." Piper rolled her eyes. "Did she really not take it that well?" _

"_She was angry as hell. She stomped around the room, yelled at me, and she actually threw some things around the room. I think she was trying to aim at my head, but missed, a lot." Ryan explained. _

"_What a bitch." Piper stated. "Anyways, Miranda wanted me to give you these cookies."_

_Ryan took the cookies that Piper handed to him, and nodded towards her. It never failed to amuse him about how Miranda baked so much and gave them to all her friends. He watched as the dark red headed girl left his home, and closed the door. _

_He put the basket of cookies on the coffee table, stood up, and stretched. He walked towards the staircase, and walked up. _

_Once he was in his room, he leaned against the door with his eyes closed. _

"_What a relief." Ryan muttered to himself as he thought about Scarlett finally being out of his life._

"_What's a relief?" A soft voice asked. _

_Ryan recognized the voice to be Lacey's. He could always tell when it was her voice that was the one speaking. It was soft, and melodious, and sometimes earsplitting when she wanted to be loud. He looked over on the bed, and his eyes widened when he saw that she only wore a shirt, a shirt that was his. Ryan shook his head, and blinked to make sure that he wasn't dreaming. Even though he had toyed with the idea of her being his, he hadn't counted on it coming true._

"_Scarlett being out of my life." He replied, surprised that he could even find his voice. _

_His eyes ran over her, and he licked his now dried lips. The shirt she wore had ridden up a little, making it so that it barely covered her perfectly tanned and toned legs as it only came down almost mid thigh. A couple of the buttons at the top of the shirt were unbuttoned, which showed a bit of the cleavage he had been mesmerized by from time to time. Her long silky, smooth hair was draped over one shoulder, leaving him a view of the neck that he wanted to kiss and nibble on. Her lips looked so alluring, and her eyes had a fiery, yet mischievous, look in them. _

_He felt tortured as he gazed intently at her. _

"_Oh Ryan, you seem so… miserable." _

_Ryan closed his eyes, and smirked slightly. He loved the way she said his name. There was something about it that just made him...ugh.  
_

"_You have no idea." He breathed as he walked forward a little. _

"_You should try and relax." _

_Ryan watched as she slid off of the bed. The shirt rose up a couple more centimeters, and he almost groaned when he saw a good portion of her upper thigh. He only stood in that one spot stupidly as she walked over to him and placed her hands on his broad chest. _

"_You're so edgy." She whispered. _

_Ryan quivered a little as her hot breath hit his lips. He looked into her dark brown eyes, and noticed the underlying lust in them. Oh how that look in her eyes turned him on so much. He looked in her eyes again, and noticed that splotches of black that were in them. How had he not noticed them before? _

"_I want you." He growled._

"_Then why don't you get me?" She whispered seductively, gently biting his bottom lip before pulling away. _

_His hand found their way to her chin, and he tilted her head up a little more. He slowly pressed his lips onto hers, and savored the feeling of her soft lips against his. His arms wrapped themselves around Lacey's much smaller waist and pulled her closer to his body. _

_He grunted in dismay as she pulled away from him, and withdrew herself from his embrace. _

"_Take me Ryan…and make me yours." _

_Ryan watched as she beckoned him towards her with a wag of her finger. He followed wholeheartedly. The blonde gently pushed the younger woman onto the spacious bed, and crawled on top of her. He once more connected his lips with hers as his hands ran over the smooth skin of her legs. He growled lowly, and wrapped her left leg around his waist. Ryan could feel Lacey taking her sweet time with touching his chest lightly. _

_He was a bit surprised when she rolled them over so that she was straddling him. Ryan grinned up at her, and stared desirably at her when he noticed her sly smirk. He closed his eyes, and felt her fingers brushing against the skin of his chest as she unbuttoned the shirt that he wore. Once he felt his chest exposed, he shivered as the cool air he hadn't noticed, meet his hot skin. Ryan groaned as he felt Lacey's soft fingers gliding over his torso; ghostly massaging his muscles. _

_He opened his eyes, and saw her lean down to meet his awaiting lips. _

_Ryan pulled off the shirt on his own, and rolled them over so that he was on top once more. His slid his hands up the shirt, and noticed she did not have anything underneath. He slipped the shirt off of her body since it had been so loose on her, and stared hungrily at the curvaceous and sexy body that was Lacey's. _

"_You're so beautiful." He whispered into her ear as he gently bit her ear lobe. _

"_I want you." She moaned softly. _

_Ryan felt his pants being pushed down, and then felt her soft hands on his erect member. He groaned, and stared into her eyes as her hands started teasing him._

"_You torture me." He groaned, staring down at her with hungry blue eyes._

"_Good." She grinned wickedly._

_Ryan was done waiting, but before he could, she stopped him. _

"_I have something to say." _

"_What is it?" He asked as his restraint was cracking. He wanted her. He needed her. He wanted to take her, and ravage her body. He wanted to give her as much pleasure as he could, and savor the pleasure he would __undoubtedly receive from her._

"_Wake up." _

"_Huh?" Ryan was now confused._

"_Wake up Ryan. Wake up." She sang softly. _

_End._

Ryan gasped a bit as his eyes suddenly shot open.

That dream had been so vivid. He could've sworn that it was real. Ryan could possibly say that that had been one of the most animated dreams he had ever had. It was the first time he had actually dreamed about Lacey, but after that dream, he wanted nothing more than to have the real thing. Could they be something more than friends? He knew that they could, he could see it in her eyes sometimes, and in the way she looked at him sometimes.

Looking down at the girl that he held closely to his body, a miniscule smile played on his lips. Lacey looked so at peace as she lay there with the moonlight dancing across her face. He never noticed how kissable her lips looked until this moment. He was actually tempted to find out if they were as soft as they looked.

Ryan restrained himself, however.

"What is wrong with me?" The blonde whispered to himself before shaking off the thoughts, and falling back into a deep slumber.

Unbeknownst to Ryan, Lacey was having quite a similar dream.

_Lacey's Dream: _

_Throwing her shirt onto the bed, Lacey stood in the middle of her bedroom clad in only a pair of matching boyshorts and a bra. She had recently gotten done taking a shower, and now just looked forward to lying on her bed doing nothing. So as she threw herself onto the comfy mattress, Lacey stretched her body, and let all the tension from her muscles drift away. _

_Turning her head over to the side, she grabbed her iPod, and chose a random song to play. Once a song started to play, the seventeen year old sighed, and closed her eyes. _

_Only a few moments passed, but unexpectedly the warm palm of hand glided over the side of her stomach. Her eyes shot wide open with alert; ready to strike at the intruder that was touching her. Once she saw who it was, however, Lacey fell at ease once more, and let a tiny smile cross her lips…_

…_Until she saw the look in his eyes. _

_Unlike the playful, jovial gaze he usually had in those seemingly depthless blue eyes, Ryan possessed a mien of longing and yearning. Lacey was almost tempted to look away, almost. _

_No words needed to be uttered between the two. Ryan's actions towards Lacey answered everything that the seventeen teen year old was questioning about. Although, only one question wasn't being answered: why was Ryan even doing this? _

_Lacey never had the chance to dwell on the question much longer after she noticed Ryan slowly crawling over her body so that he was the one on top. _

_Gazing up at Ryan, Lacey felt her heart pick up its pace, and began a marathon of running beats. Her stomach also seemed to be in sync with her heart; the nerves were now doing somersaults, resulting in the familiar 'butterfly' feeling that grew stronger with each time she saw Ryan. _

_Their bodies were so close that she could feel the torridity that radiated off of his body; the warmness of his breath when it danced across her lips. Her body felt ablaze as Ryan hovered over her, but whenever she became aware of Ryan's hands exploring her body, a tsunami of chilled shivers weaved through her system. _

_Before long, the temptation became too strong for Lacey to ignore. She had to, __needed to__, satisfy her craving curiosity. Her lips quickly pressed against Ryan's in an untamed act on enticement. Almost immediately afterwards, an explosion erupted within her. This one simple kiss had given her a feeling that she hadn't felt in so long. _

_She needed more; more of Ryan, more of his touch. _

_Pressing her body against his, Lacey glided her hands over Ryan's torso. She marveled slightly at the muscles beneath her fingertips before feeling Ryan's lips trail down to her neck. Lacey's breathing became broken as Ryan sucked lightly on a particularly sensitive spot. _

_His hands were also far from idle. They were roaming around the unfamiliar territory of her body. They ran up and down her legs before moving to massage other parts of her anatomy…other __sensitive__ parts; resulting in moans emitting from Lacey. The torturous pleasure blinded her for a few minutes before she realized the hard erection that was pressed harshly against her._

_A slow smirk crossed her lips as she grinded her hips against Ryan's. _

_Quickly, she stripped Ryan of all his clothing while he did the same to her. The kiss they were sharing was wild and hungry. They rolled around on her bed before Ryan's dominance overpowered her, and she was stuck underneath him once more. _

_Both of them had a light sheen of sweat covering their skin, and wanted nothing more than to satisfy their…desires. _

_Ryan's hand slowly slithered down Lacey's body and Lacey held her breath for a few seconds when she felt his fingers at her wetness. A low moan discharged in the back of her throat as she felt his fingers rubbing against her clit. Lacey arched her back as his fingers continued their onslaught on her. _

_Moments later, she felt his erection at her opening; slowly pushing inside of her. _

_Her arms and legs wrapped around Ryan's body as he rocked lightly inside of tightness. Her body quivered, and she craved Ryan with all of her heart…_

Lacey jumped a little as she was awoken suddenly. Her eyes quickly adjusted to the darkness of the room, and on her stomach, sat little Taco. A frustrated sigh passed her lips. Lacey grabbed Taco, and placed him on the floor. She was disappointed that her dream had ended so abruptly, but as she lied back down onto the bed, she was now aware of the ache that was pulsating in between her legs.

A small blush appeared on her cheeks as she looked over at Ryan. He seemed so at ease as he lay there in deep slumber. Lacey sighed softly, and wiped away the gloss of sweat that had accumulated on her forehead. She got comfortable once more, and closed her eyes; willing herself to fall back to sleep.

Unfortunately, after a few times of tossing and turning, Lacey figured that she would not be able to sleep just yet. The seventeen year old slipped off of the mattress, and silently crept towards her bedroom door. When she heard Ryan moving around, however, she froze, and gazed back towards him. She was relieved to see that he was still asleep, and swiftly snuck out of the room.

Lacey went downstairs, and headed straight for the kitchen. She paused in her stride when she noticed the lights were still on, and there was a sound of a person moving around.

Slowly, she moved towards her destination, and her uneasiness was lightened up when she saw that it was only Piper.

"Hey Lace, what are you doing still up?" Piper smiled slightly.

"I just woke up, and needed something to drink." Lacey replied with a tiny smile of her own.

"Well, turn off the lights when you're done. I'm going to sleep, see you in the morning. Night Lace." Piper yawned.

"Night Pip."

Lacey took out a cup, and filled it with ice and water. The cold liquid was a blissful paradise as she drunk every last drop of it. Once she was satisfied, Lacey placed the cup near the sink, and turned off the lights; leaving the area engulfed into the moonlit darkness that filtered through the windows.

The seventeen year old slowly climbed up the stairs, and stared at the pictures that were hung on the wall. Family photos. The thought of family made Lacey scoff, but when she saw Kia's photo, she had to turn away, and bury her thoughts. It didn't help much since Kia's face was burned into her brain. When she saw Ryan laying on her bed again, her guilt melted away into nothingness.

The teen climbed back into bed, and laid on her side. Even if Ryan had no idea of the dire problems in her life at the moment, at least he comforted her, sometimes even without her asking him to. Some moments later, Ryan's arm wrapped around her stomach, and pulled her close to him.

A bloom of jumpy nerves scattered throughout Lacey's body, and a smile etched onto her lips as the moon's bright beam of soothing light gazed down on them.

* * *

Woohoo! Finally! The romance between Ryan and Lacey will be starting soon, very soon ;]

Anyways, thanks to those that are reviewing, I really do appreciate them ^_^

Leave reviews, and I'll give you high fives haha :3


	12. Chapter 12

**Author's note: **

**Woohoo, first update in so long. That's an accomplishment. **

**Anyways, I just wanted to ask if anyone would like to _co-write _this story. If so, message me, and we can talk about it. Credits will go to you for any part you do for the story. So if you're interested just say so. **

**Please leave any thoughts/comments in a review, and message me if you want to co-write this story.  
**

**Thank you guys! :)  
**

* * *

**Chapter Twelve: Attempted Escape **

* * *

Kia shivered slightly as she felt the night's chilly breeze flow through the window, and wrap around her in its unpleasant embrace. The eight year old covered herself with her arms, and tried to create heat by rubbing her arms. Sadly, it did almost nothing for her. Kia could barely create any warmth, and the fact sent an ache through her chest. Why couldn't she be as strong as Lacey?

The dying fire in the fireplace crackled its last ember before slowly vanishing into darkness.

There was no noise. None…except for the shallow howl of the wind.

Kia's eyes scanned the cabin, and she noticed that the door to her room was left slightly ajar. From the time she had spent there, she had noticed that there were four main rooms in the cabin. She was in an empty one that didn't seem to be used for anything. Another was a bedroom with a couple of mattresses to sleep on (probably where the two men that kidnapped her were), a living room, and a kitchen.

As the moments passed, Kia's confidence grew and grew until she was sure she wanted to attempt this.

It seemed easy enough. All she really had to do was run in a straight line.

Kia slowly opened the door, cringing as it creaked. It wasn't all that loud, but to her, it was as deafening as a clap of thunder. Once it was opened enough for her to slip out, Kia took her chance and sprinted silently to the living room.

The eight year old crouched by the couch. Her eyes quickly found the room that the two men were staying in, and tried to listen for any sound to indicate that they were indeed asleep. As she waited, Kia heard the familiar sound of snoring, and relaxed. She would be safe…for now.

If they were to wake up, she didn't know what they would do to her.

Kia chewed on her bottom lip as she took a step closer to the cabin's front door, but froze when she accidently walked into something. She tried to stable it with her hands, and let out of a breath of relief once it was perfectly fine again.

The short girl turned her head to look at the bedroom door again. She was terrified that they were going to wake up and foil her plans of escape.

Her heart was racing, her palms were clammy, and beads of sweat coated her forehead.

Quickly maneuvering around any other objects that could get fall easily, Kia was happy when she finally got to the door…only to be left disappointed when she saw that it was locked by a lock pad.

Knowing that the key would most likely be with one of the guys, she didn't want to risk the chance of getting caught.

Then, another idea popped into her head.

The window.

She could take out of the screen, and get out that way.

'_The screen is hard to take out though.'_ Kia thought to herself, remembering one time she had tried, and ended up falling on the floor while Lacey had laughed and patted her head.

Walking into the kitchen, she searched delicately for a small knife or at least anything sharp. Once she acquired a small knife, Kia slowly walked back into her own room. Growing up, Lacey had always told her to be careful and walk slowly if she were ever to hold a knife for any reason.

She swiftly closed the door, and looked at the open window.

Kia went up to it, and began to cut the screen open. After the hole was big enough for her to fit through, she put the knife down somewhere on the floor.

She then placed some boxes that were in there against the wall, and began to climb through the hole. Kia was halfway out when she looked down and saw the drop she would need to take. It was about a five foot drop, but even that scared Kia a bit because she was slightly afraid of heights.

Closing her eyes, Kia dropped herself to the ground.

"Ouch!" She muttered as she rubbed her knee.

But that didn't matter too much to her, she was free! Well, not exactly. She wasn't out of danger yet. She was still in the vicinity of the two men that kidnapped her.

Once Kia brushed all the debris off of her, she sprinted away from the cabin.

When she was somewhere where she couldn't even see the cabin, she began to slow down her pace until she fully stopped to catch her breath. Looking around, Kia felt a bit disheartened when she realized that she didn't even know which way to go now.

When she heard a twig snap, she panicked again, and ran into a random direction.

Kia ran and ran.

Until she ran into Emmanuel.

"Where are you going Kia?" He asked, chuckling mockingly.

"I wanna go home!" She screamed, trying to run away from him.

"Sorry Kia. My boss would kill me if he found out that I let you get away." Emmanuel quickly grabbed Kia, and started walking towards the cabin.

"No! I don't wanna go back! I don't like you guys!" Kia screamed as she hit and kicked him.

"Sorry kid, but I gotta take you back."

Emmanuel did feel a bit sorry for her. She was innocent in all of this, and they dragged her into this. If he didn't owe Sebastian his life, he would help Kia out a little bit. The poor kid was probably going to be either traumatized for a while or dead by the end of this.

"Hey look there's the cabin."

"NO!"

Emmanuel went around to the back, and opened the door that led to the room that he and Sebastian were sleeping in.

"Why the hell do you have the kid?" Sebastian asked, looking over to them.

"She tried to escape."

"What? Well then, I guess we'll have to cuff her from now on won't we?"

"No…please…no."

_**Lacey: **_

It was around 4AM, and Lacey was sitting near her window. Her mind dwelled on Kia, and she just couldn't get over how frightened she must be at the moment. Lacey had expected him to target her, or her friends, but somehow, she had hoped that he wouldn't stoop so low as to use Kia.

What a mess this had all become…

…and somehow, she knew that Ryan would get involved too. Looking back at him, she knew she would feel extremely guilty if anything were to happen to him. He had been nothing but good to her, and she appreciated him so much.

When was this all going to end?


End file.
